Ben Johnson watched his Gophers basketball team pull off the improbable last season. They beat Rutgers shorthanded for his first Big Ten home victory with the conference-minimum seven scholarship players.
A year later, the Gophers were in a similar situation Wednesday night with leading scorer Dawson Garcia and two key reserves sidelined. A cast of unlikely contributors and Jamison Battle's 20 points weren't enough, though, in a 61-57 loss against Indiana in front of an announced crowd of 9,276 at Williams Arena.
"The thing I'm most proud of is their fight, their toughness and their grit," Johnson said. "I think the will they had to compete and give themselves a chance was well done by them."
Battle's fourth three-pointer sent the Barn into an uproar with his team taking a late 55-54 lead with 6 minutes, 21 seconds to play.
The Gophers (7-12, 1-8) were the worst free-throw shooting team in college basketball (59.3%) entering the game, but they got two free throws from Taurus Samuels to extend their lead to 57-54 with 3:20 remaining. The upset seemed within reach.
But Trayce Jackson-Davis, who finished with 25 points and 21 rebounds, made the go-ahead basket for a 59-57 lead on an offensive rebound on Race Thompson's missed second free throw with 43 seconds left. And the Gophers missed their last 11 shots.
"You just have to fight and bring it every game, regardless of who is out there," Battle said. "If there's a few [players] down, you're still going to go out there with your head held high and you're going to give your best effort."
Garcia missed the game because of a bone bruise on his right foot suffered late in Sunday's 60-56 loss at Michigan. Freshmen Pharrel Payne (concussion protocol), who also hurt himself vs. Michigan, and Braeden Carrington (stress reaction) were in street clothes on the bench.
